Hey guys, have a few questions between 2 wakeboards I'm looking at and I don't know a hole hell of a lot about the sport so hoping yeahs could give me a hand. I have a hyperlite premier 138 right now and it's getting old so I figured I'd upgrade. Plan on getting into wakeboarding a lot more this summer Courtesy of a new boat. Back when I got the board like 4 years ago it was just to try out the sport I didn't research anything or do any of that I just more or less bought the first board and bindings set I found that was on ebay so I'm not very familiar with boards bindings and what not. Anyways I can go wake to wake on toe and heal side, last boat didn't have a tower this one does. I don't ride any cable it's all behind boat. 2 boards I'm looking at are the slingshot Lyman and a hyperlite Murray nova. All the reviews I can find are on youtube And are probably bias so I'd like to hear what people have to say about them. Everything I found on the Lyman though seemed good. People say its fast and I think I'd like that since I'd consider my board now slow. Anyways help me out guys I really don't know what to look for. Thanks in advance.

Haha I like this forum already, but I'm 160lbs I don't know what you mean by percentage of cable. I just have like 50 feet of rope that pulls me. My skill level is probably intermediate. I'm really comfortable when I'm on the board just couldn't do much because had a pretty small wake and no tower. I'd send a picture of the boat but its in storage and girlfriend is busy in the kitchen, she's camera shy.

There was nothing about the premier that really stuck out. Like I don't know what to compare it too because it was my only board. I find it kind of heavy though. I hear a lot of people say go demo some boards but I can't because I live no where near any board shops plus there is still snow on the ground over here in Canada.

I have the murray nova right now, it is a great board! It is very smooth on the water and has great pop and easy landings. As for speed I think it is fast compared to my old board a liquid force PS3. I would highly recommend the murray nova it is a phenomenal board. As for the lyman I'm not to sure about it but I have been hearing great reviews about slingshot so my guess is its a great board too. I guess the best way to find the right board would be to demo them or just go to your local shop and check them out. Hope this helps! Happy Boarding

12many, you really need to demo, The murray board really sucked 5 years ago, they put a 3 stage rocker on it and now it gets great pop? doubt it.
Some dealers will let you demo several boards for 50 dollars a piece, so you can demo 5 different boards one day for $250 and then the 250 can be used to buy your new board. Just make sure you try Ronix One and then you can gauge all of the other boards to that board, very few boards can compare to it.

It's almost impossible to demo a board where I'm from even if it was summer here I'd would be a 7 and a half hour drive to a board shop that even sales wakeboards little alone offers demos. Jo shmoe what do you like about ronix one? I'm also open to anyone's opinion on what they think is a good board, just tell me why you like it.

I used to ride the 06 Premier so I've got a little insight into that board. I would agree- in a perfect world we'd all be able to demo boards, try as many as we could get our hands on then make a decision around what exactly would be the perfect fit based on how our big Nose grab 180 into the flats felt, it's not practical.

That generation of the Premier at least that shape they used for a handful of years had a few key things about it that really stood out:

1) It was REALLY sticky. The large, long molded fins really stuck you to the water. It released super late and didn't lend itself much to playing on the water. It wasn't easy to break it loose at all.

2) It was a houseboat, it didn't have much "zip" at all. It moved quite slow.

3) It was HEAVY. Also, like a houseboat.

4) It had very very consistent pop, it was essentially the definition of a subtle-3 stage rocker board at the time.

5) Sharper rails made it a little unforgiving.

So, in summary, that generation of Premier was slower, not very playful, handled a bit slower and stickier, and had a very middle of the road pop. It's a very easy going board, and it's consistency was really a good feature of it. It was so middle of the road, it made it easy to use.

So, knowing that you haven't had many boards to ride or to compare to, a few questions that might help out, some of them may have been asked above-

1) Do you need a board with a slider base? Do you ride cable? Winch, Jib? Boat only? Are you going to get into any rail riding?
2) What's your budget, how much are you looking to spend?
3) Would you like a more wake to wake pop? Do you like to head out to the flats more?
4) Do you want a more aggressive, vertical pop? (Keep in mind that your Premier is the middle of the road)
5) Would you prefer a less aggressive pop than your current board, but a more consistent one?
6) Do you want a board that responds and cuts in faster than your Premier?

Throw a few of those out there, and we'll be able to dial you in better. Just trying to throw out a few cornerstone questions that'll help guide your board decision.

I don't have any experience with the lyman but I would assume it's a lot more board than you need. The Murray is a good all around board but I'm just curious why you want to pay extra for the NOVA? If your set on these two I would say find a Murray BIO and put the money you saved into a good rope/handle if you don't have one already. I also had a 2008 Premier as my first board and it was terrible compared!

If your still open to other suggestions I would recommend checking out a LF Trip($269 MSRP) or the LF Witness[($299) because I know these boards]. I got a Witness right at the same level you are and I progressed up through all the basic inverts and 360's on that board and I still go back and ride it sometimes because I love it still.

* Disclaimer I ride for LF so yes I am partially biased but I know more about these boards than other brands which is why I recommend them.

The murray nova 137 is just as light as my 05 premier 130. The murray is cut really similar to the premier but lacks the buldge after your feet on the bottom deck, which makes it faster by not plowing the water. The murray is definitely a looser board, took me awhile to get used, kept slipping out. If your riding a small wake i think the premier will be better since it has that buldge infront on the bottom deck of the board. Pop is a little more straight up on the premier, and the murray is just average pop. The way i see the murray is just an average board i dont love it and i dont hate it.

I'll try to answer some of these questions best I can.
I ride strictly behind boat. Nothing else
I think I'd like to try maybe a looser feeling board on the water compared to my premier
I'd love to land out in the flats, I think that would be a blast and this year I will have the wake to do it.
I want my board to cut in fast, or faster then mine at least.
I don't have a budget I'm willing to pay for a board that ill like and advance on.
Last couple years I was being pulled behind a maxum with no tower and didn't have much of wake. Just recently picked up a yamaha 212x so finally get to use a tower and it has ballast tanks so hoping the wake is some what big. Compared to what I'm use to anyways. I'm really hoping to advance this year.

I don't see how the Lyman could be a lot more board than needed. i might say such a phrase for deciding on Nova core... unless you will be riding several times a week OR if you are set on having the aluminum track for mounting boots

speaking of boots, don't understimate a good pair of new boots if you don't have them already (in mind)
I also agree that a good wake rope (and handle) is a necessity

I agree that the old premier was very slow and sticky. find comfort that the vast majority of boards now will be faster than the premier. I feel your pain for not being close enough to demo gear. Its rare that i hear of someone that must travel further than myself. but again, know that whatever board you choose you will probably like more than the premier, especially after you get used to your new ride (speaking of the board and the boat)

I have not rode the Lyman, but would love to. there are some added perks of the Lyman being USA made strong, environmentally friendly, etc., but how a board rides matters most I have always loved everything about slingshot's boards, but i am biased.
My buddy rides the Murray (bio core). I liked how it rode. very predictable, just a little bit of kick can be felt from the subtle 3-stage rocker. forgiving, it would not cut you down if you landed a little off.

with your size I think boards close to 140cm will suit you best
Subtle-3 stage or hybrid rockers sound like they will be good, unless you want to remove the feelings of aggressive kick to the pop then continuous rockers will do best.

congrats on the new boat. i don't want to burst any bubbles, but the factory ballast on the boat alone will not boost the wake much. the tower is a huge benefit on ANY boat

I think I narrowed my search down a bit. I think I'm going to look more into slingshot. All the reviews I've found from slingshot seem to be positive compared to the Murray where I find is a like it or hate it kind of board. My mind is not made up yet though and I'm looking into all the boards that everyone has mentioned thus far. I don't know why the Lyman takes my interest so much, I just keep thinking I want it. The slingshot Lyman with the rad bindings is what I'm looking at right now. Still looking though I still have a couple months till the warm weather hits and my mind will likely change 2 or 3 times before then.

While I haven't ridden the Lyman, I do ride a Slingshot Kine right now (Coming from a long line of Ronix boards and Hyperlite before that)

1) The small size and profile of the fin (.8") that should come on that board will definitely allow it to ride more loose and more playfully compared to your Premier.

2) The Lyman has that more "subtle" 3 stage rocker that you're used to, which also will allow you to carry an arc further out into the flats with a solid level of consistency.

3) The thinner profile of Slingshot boards and construction of the Lyman make it a pretty quick reacting and faster cutting board. Certainly would feel quite fast after your Premier.

So, based on what you're looking for, the construction of Slingshot and the Lyman specifically would meet your goal for a more loose, quicker responding, faster cutting board with enough consistency to start progressing on.

I'm riding a Lyman now and I like it but don't love it all the time. I like that it is more playful, cuts and lands fast and the flex is just enough for a nice feel leaving the wake and landing. The only time I don't love it is the consistancy and that is probably my fault. I've only had 5 or 6 sets on it and I find I need to concentrate more on my timing and body position coming from a LF Witness. I moved the fins to the outer most position in the last couple of runs and found this helped a little. I still love my Witness because it's such a great all around consistent board. In fact I bought a set of open toe SS Verdicts to put on it just so I can justify brining it out in the boat everytime I ride "for other people" but I still strap into it every few runs to have some familiar fun and let my toes hang out. I'm riding about your same level but I go to the cable a couple times a month in the summer and I wanted a flex board with some bottom features that would help with control, it's definately a boar board though. I personally think the Lyman is made for more advanced riders, like the Ronix One, but anyone can enjoy it once you get used to it.

I still recomend the Witness to anyone looking for board recommendation who isn't advanced enough to already know how or what they want to ride. Plus you can find them for very reasonable prices which can make it a great secondary board after one or two seasons for boat owners when they bring their friends along. Boots are key, make sure you love them (Ronix Ones still rock).

The LF witness and ronix one both get great reviews. Both look like awesome boards. It's gonna be so hard to pick one out of all the boards you guys have mentioned because everything I read about them is great. I don't really think I can go wrong I think whatever I get I'll like more then my premier. Keep the recommendations coming though I like hearing about boards people progressed on and would never get rid of. Do I need to be as picky on bindings as I do about a board? I take it I do from what some people are saying, so do all bindings fit all boards? If so what are considered to be good bindings? I think I'd prefer closed toe I read that you get more control with closed toe then open but don't quote me on that because could be wrong. I have gator bindings right now and I hate how when I'm up on the board the lace locks come undone and they loosen up. Drives me crazy. What do you guys think of Velcro bindings?

Some people say they have more control some people say thats not true, whatever the case I love my closed toe bindings, however I didn't spend as much as I should have and regret not going ahead and getting a great pair of bindings instead of a good pair.
Since you live in Canada it may be worth noting that with closed toe's it will cut the wind off your toes when it starts to get cold.
I suggest going ahead and getting an awesome pair. I personally am not a huge fan of velcro's but again some people like them its all your preference. There are some awesome bindings out there that are velcro.

so on binding front there are tons and tons of threads out there on ronix ones, cells, lf watsons, harleys, slingshot rads, shredtowns etc.. pretty much look at good brands, find a boot you like fromthe description, like the look if that matters to you, and then google that boot and you'll be able to find if people like them etc. for finding threads a good hint is to put thread at the end of your source, like "slingshot rad binding thread" If you want something more snowboard style look into Hyperlite, some love em some hate them, just like everything else

if you don't have a good pair of comfortable boots, you wont be able to enjoy and control the board under your feet.

If you ever have issues with the lace locks loosening on any boots you could remove them entirely and tie the boots like a shoe OR you can remove the knot that keeps the lace-lock from falling off, then tie a knot in the end of each of the lace tips to keep the lace lock from coming off, and use the lace ends to tie a knot after you cinch the lace-lock down (kind of a combination of lace-lock AND shoe-tie method combined)

All boots will fit on any board. sometimes different screws are needed or maybe some washers, but nothing that can't be easily solved.

The slingshot Rads are very nice, 2013 RADs are recommended due to the improvements made this year.
as stated the Ronix ones are always a hit, as well as the LF watsons.
I LOVE the idea of (velcro) straps on boots. they are easy to use and can be tightened and loosened even while riding. Slingshot is the ONLY company that makes fully replaceable velcro straps which i have always thought of as a no-brainier. Slinbghots liners are removable and can be heat-molded in your home oven easily, but personally i prefer to ride them just as they are out of the box. heat molding seems to make the liners ever so slightly stiffer IMO.

King 12 can you tell me what you didn't like about the Velcro bindings? Just thinking they would be so much easier and quicker then the lace bindings but there doesn't seem to be many around so wondering if they have tightening problems or anything?

They are quicker, unfortunately not easier for me, I have this thing about putting on equipment where I wont stop fixing it until it is pretty much absolutely perfect, and when I used velcro bindings I cant get them as I wanted them, so it bugged the hell out of me and I would stand at the dock pulling the strap and re-velcroing over and over. However, these were open toes, and were one of the boots that is a size range and not a shoe size, so the fit wasnt perfect. I could see velcroing being fine with closed toe boots that fit perfect.
So yes I thought I couldnt get them tight enough. But they werent my exact shoe size, they were like 9-12 or whatever. I think a lot of lace bindings have the tab to tighten and loosed by just pulling the string and pushing the tab/ vice versa. I found that easy simple and quick both for boat and cable.
disclaimer when talking about broad subjects like this everyone forms there opinion from what they used, and not many people have used 60 or 70 bindings, so I dont doubt there are velcros that my problems would be solved, I just liked the laces

also check this website every day or so http://www.dealadaywake.com/ they throw up some awesome deals on year old boards sometimes and bindings to boot.. ha... ok... but if you see something up there or i do and it might fit the bill you can comment and tell us and Im sure we can help tell you if its a good deal or not. If the board didnt change from 12 to 13 and you like the older graphic fine/better then why not save ~50% of you money right?

Yes king 12 I fully understand what your trying to say. Now all I gotta do is decide on a board for good and a set of bindings. Started looking at the liquid force witness and I really like what that board has to offer and at a good price to. But if I have anymore questions I know where to come, you guys have been great especially for a noob like me who knows zip about the sport. If anybody has any more suggestions on good boards or bindings please share.